BIBLE HILL - The Aquaculture Genomics Laboratory at Dalhousie University's Faculty of Agriculture has discovered three new invasive species during the past 18 months in Nova Scotia waters.

"This early detection is critically important, as discovering an invasion early in the invasion process gives both growers and government managers time to develop and implement mitigation strategies to decrease the impact that these new invasions have on Atlantic Canada," said Dr. Sarah Stewart-Clark, the assistant professor in shellfish aquaculture in the department of plant and animal science.

Prior to these DNA detection assays, invasions were only discovered once the invasive species had been present for quite some time and adult populations had grown to sizes that were visible to stakeholders who were on the water. This made control and containment much more challenging.

The lab on the Bible Hill campus was also home to the International Tunicate DNA Bank. This DNA bank, which was established in 2009 and recently transferred to Dalhousie University in Halifax, contains samples of aquatic invasive species from all over the world, allowing researchers to prepare for and design assays for species not yet present in Nova Scotia waters.

Having this collection in Nova Scotia and having access to assays to screen for a wide range of invasive species in the aquaculture genomics laboratory protects Atlantic Canada from the potential impacts of new invasions.

Under the direction of Stewart-Clark, the laboratory has had major success and is directly connected to the oyster, mussel, scallop and lobster fisheries and aquaculture sectors in Atlantic Canada.

"Our goal is to provide science-based information for both industry members and government managers to best grow this industry forward in Nova Scotia," explained Stewart-Clark.

The lab has also enjoyed great success in shellfish research.

In collaboration with the Atlantic Veterinary College and Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the lab has sequenced more than 295 billion nucleotides for the Eastern Oyster - a species of critical importance to the aquaculture industry but with which very little genomic data is available.

This research is yielding new information on how this species deals with environmental stress events such as temperature and salinity fluctuations, as well as how these stress events impact the immune system of the Eastern Oyster, which has significant importance as the ocean environment changes due to global warming and ocean acidification.

"The ultimate goal of this research is to create diagnostic tests for the shellfish industry so that populations of oysters can be assessed to evaluate which parameters in the environment may be causing them to be stressed," explained Stewart-Clark. "This can be used by industry members to test new methods of seed collection, test new grow-out conditions, test new methods of shipping and harvesting all the while monitoring which methods cause stress to the oysters and which methods do not."

Plans to ban invasive alien species, such as plants, animals or insects that can carry or cause diseases, harm the environment or cause economic losses, from entering the EU and to improve efforts to address the threat posed if they do spread through the EU were backed by environment MEPs on Thursday. Under the draft rules, species declared "of Union concern" would be banned.

“We achieved a good proposal on how to tackle invasive alien species to protect biodiversity and not endanger activities of European citizens at the same time,” said Pavel Poc (S&D, CZ), who is steering the legislation through Parliament. His report was adopted by 49 votes to 4, with 3 abstentions.

“The proposal will change during negotiations, but our red line is to ensure the feasibility of the final proposal and transparency throughout the process. Citizens and experts have to have their say when the target invasive species are defined and member states have to have the possibility to adapt the legislation for their bio-geographical conditions,” he added.

The new rules will require member states to carry out an analysis of the pathways of introduction and spread of invasive alien species (IAS) and set up surveillance systems and action plans. Official controls at EU borders will also be stepped up. For IAS that have spread widely, EU countries will have to draw up management plans.

Alien species of Union concern

Species deemed to be "of Union concern" must be identified on a list and banned from being introduced, transported, placed on the market, offered, kept, grown or released in the environment, MEPs say. They opposed capping the list of IAS to 50 species, insisting on an open list that can include species that are native to one part of the EU but invasive in another. The committee also introduced measures to tackle IAS that are of concern for individual member states.

EU countries will have to set appropriate penalties for breaching the rules. However, they will be able to establish a permit system allowing specialized establishments to breed certain invasive species, provided they are of high economic, social and environmental value.

Background

According to the European Commission, IAS are one of the major, and growing, causes of biodiversity loss and species extinction. IAS can also be vectors of diseases or directly cause health problems (e.g. asthma, dermatitis and allergies). They can damage infrastructure and facilities, hamper forestry or cause agricultural losses. IAS are estimated to cost the Union at least €12 billion per year.

Next steps

The committee voted by 46 votes to 7, with 1 abstention, to give, Mr Poc a mandate to start negotiations with the Greek presidency of the Council with a view to reaching agreement at reading.

Each year, PNWER invites you to join more than 600 key business leaders, legislators, and government leaders from PNWER's 10 states, provinces, and territories to address the major policy issues impacting the region. The 24th Annual Summit will be held July 20 – 24, 2014 at the Whistler Fairmont Chateau in Whistler, B.C.!

Within BC, paved and unpaved road length increased by 82% between 1988 and 2005. In 2000, there were over 420,000 road-stream crossings in BC; over the following five years, road-stream crossings increased by about 13,000 per year (BC Ministry of Environment 2007). Across the province, estimates of unpaved roads vary from 400,000 to 550,000 km (Forest Practices Board 2005).

Since then, more roads have been built by companies in the forest, oil, gas, mineral, and hydro-electric sectors. At the same time, many roads have been abandoned and have become unusable due to a lack of resources for maintenance; others have been intentionally closed or decommissioned. Thus recreational access has been constrained. The environmental effects of roads are diverse, and include impacts on aquatic and terrestrial wildlife, plants, and their habitats, as well as ecosystem and biophysical processes (including soils, water, and air).

At this conference, we’ll address road-network effects and management responses for addressing landscape-level environmental and social impacts. Topics of interest include road effects, strategic planning, tools, and administration.

We anticipate talks that summarize the positive and negative effects of road networks across large regions or landscapes. We’ll follow this with specific research findings and case studies. As well, we expect talks will address strategic road-network solutions. It’s likely we’ll have a panel to address road-related regulatory aspects.